After long exploring the world of making-up, photographing, and indulging in TPE dolls shaped fantasy forms, I found myself longing for something new. Honestly, I was getting a bit bored with the dozens of TPE dolls that I’ve owned or who’ve moved through my workshop in the last few years. They are all fantastic dolls and I have no regrets, but I personally began to desire something more akin to the actual women who inspire our fascinations and less like the female caricatures that comprised my current collection and dominate the doll market.
As silicone dolls have recently become far more accessible with time and are now approaching price parity with their TPE counterparts and are made by many more manufactures in a wider array of styles, it felt like the time to check out silicone dolls was right. Captivated by the prospect of hyper-realistic details and discovering that I had so much more to learn in the silicone world. I found my search through this world heady and exhilarating, a feeling reminiscent of the excitement and anticipation of finding and ordering my very first doll.
So, I began to shop. I looked at many, many dolls in my price range but after all it wasn’t too long until I stumbled upon SM’s 156c. I had, at that moment, almost immediately made my choice. Or maybe, in a sense, she chose me…
If you own a doll you might know what I mean. There’s this moment when you feel like you’ve found the one. Where all the hours of browsing and the other dolls you’ve admired or lusted after seemingly vanish – collapsing into a singular obsession with that doll. For me, that doll was and is the 156c with the #X8 head.
I looked at all the photos of the 156c I could find in this forum and elsewhere, as well as the helpful if austere and brief videos and factory photos supplied by SM Doll. I studied all I could find, from the lovely owner threads to the polished and beautiful professional photographs. I looked, and looked again. I was trying to find a flaw, searching for something to break my fever. That moment simply never came.
Her sculpt is far from the common notions so well represented by dolls these days – an idealized, even essentialized woman. She has smaller breasts, less shapely hips, skin dotted with subtle imperfections and uneven veins, rough textured hands and feet, so on and so forth. I could go on but - if I did - I’d be missing the point. The very genius and beauty of the 156c lies precisely in the sum total of her imperfections.
Her builders meticulously designed, sculpted and painted her in accordance with a vision exceptional and rare in the doll market – that of a youthful, athletic, and indeed gorgeous but not quite perfect young woman. In sum, the 156c encompasses a form of beauty that is not a defiance of the great variances and limitations of nature but rather a celebration of its glory. An homage to the way a real girl’s flaws and imperfections can somehow all contribute to her splendor.
This attention to detail and boldness of concept meant that I could hardly look away from the 156c. I could imagine her being shy, a bit timid, even self-conscious about parts of her body (looking at you chonky arms). Yet her reserved girl-next-door facade seemed to conceal a sensual and bold presence just beneath the surface, waiting maybe, for me to bring her to life. I was already humanizing her, building her character in my mind. I was obsessed.
Thoughts like these are rare for me in my jaded self-ascribed “doll veteran” status, so I knew I had truly reached the point of no return. I had to have her. I wanted a relationship with her. Thank goodness she could be mine.
Though thoroughly fixated, I was not without apprehensions as I commenced the buying process. She was a big purchase, from a manufacturer I felt I hardly knew, and in a material that I poorly understood. Would I even like silicone after being so familiar with soft, supple TPE? Could an SM doll possibly live up to the all the silicone hype? Could she possibly be worth the financial investment when TPE dolls have come so far for so much less money? Ultimately, would I fall for her? Would I experience the deep emotional connection that I longed for?
I ordered her only this past weekend and within 48 hours, she appeared at my doorstep. I was lucky enough to experience unbelievably fast shipping (a happy accident of geography and shipping from their USA warehouse). Thankfully, I completely avoided the brutal, brutal wait.
Even in so short a time, the level of service I received in those few days was outstanding. Star was tremendously helpful and supremely patient with my relentless questions and managed to accommodate my requests with a not-insignificant amount of work. It was a great shopping experience overall. Since then, communication has slowed a bit. My guess is that Lunar New Year is to blame, and I fully expect that to change when business picks back up again.
Unboxing & First Impressions
Arriving on my doorstep just days after ordering, my 156c was packaged and shipped with same level of care they put into her design. The plain unmarked box is substantial and sturdy, and the packing materials are borderline excessive. She arrived encased in foam and tape and was wrapped in a delightfully soft blanket. It is by far the best packing I’ve ever seen in a doll purchase.
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First, I managed to free her head from the cocoon of foam and received my first glimpse of her. Instantly, I knew I had made the right decision. I noted her bright blue eyes, alabaster skin speckled with light freckles, gorgeous high cheekbones, the subtle detailing of the lips, and that sense of sweet wide-eyed innocence that had immediately demanded my attention. Her face radiated vivaciousness and character.
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“Too bad her breasts were going to be just as firm” I thought, noticing the veins that subtly streak across her bosom. Then, when I touched her breast for the first time, they seemed to melt into my hand with an ideal mixture of supple softness and slight resistance. I was awestruck. They were by far the softest, most realistic feeling breasts I’ve ever seen on any doll. Far better than I would have thought possible – virtually indistinguishable from the real thing.
Sure, I’d seen SM’s softness videos, demonstrating a fairly convincing visual effect. Heck, I even had one on loop there for a little while. I’ve made those videos before and I know that you can never quite tell how much pressure a hand is putting as it squeezes and caresses. Honestly, I don’t think anything I say could possibly do the sensation of fondling these breasts any level of justice. It’s truly something that you have to experience for yourself to believe. The chest on this doll is mind-blowingly real.
I eventually got her head on the easy connector, which is quite convenient but has a little looser hold than I’m used to. It does wiggle out of the box but after adding a little Teflon tape to the quick connect base's threading and some foam padding around the post it’s much better. I’ll keep you posted as to how it holds up.
Transformation
When placed the included jet-black wig on her head. The sight of her standing before me crystalized emotions that were forming since even before her arrival: the sense of absolute adoration, the desire to care for her, and to enjoy, in every way, her beauty and charm.
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She’s the first doll in my collection that I’ve ever felt compelled to name. I hope you can plainly see why.
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